‘Do black people read?’ What my years in publishing have taught me about diversity in books | Natalie Jerome
Malorie Blackman laments the lack of BAME children’s characters. I know – it’s a real battle to get writers of colour published
by Natalie Jerome
Aug 17, 2019
4 minutes
My daughter, like me, is of mixed heritage. She has wildly curly hair, as have I. When she was born four years ago I was given five copies of the same kids’ picture book by well-meaning friends and relatives. It was called Guess How Much I Love You. This book, whose lead characters are rabbits, was a bestseller in the 1990s. Back then it flew off the shelves. What I did not expect when I was pregnant with my daughter was that it would be far easier to find her a rabbit picture book than one featuring a child like her with brown skin and curls.
This week , author of Noughts
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